Affection & Wrath
by Miss Snazzy
Summary: Edward will do whatever he can to keep Bella safe, even break her heart. Regardless of his intentions, there are consequences for meddling with the gods. New Moon AU. Bella/Zeus. Bella/Edward.
1. Chapter 1

Affection & Wrath

She sat on the roof, gazing unseeingly at the stars. Nostalgia, bitter as it may be, brushed comfortingly at the edge of her thoughts. She rubbed her face tiredly, unwilling to entertain the notions such feelings would illicit.

"You came close to being exposed tonight."

She shut her eyes at his voice, having heard the telltale fluttering of his wings. Eagles were hardly common in this age, but even if they were, there was an unnatural elegance to his flight that simple birds could never hope to possess.

"I do not wish to hear it," she sighed, finally glancing at him.

He was unnaturally handsome as always—all strong angles and dark curls. No matter how many centuries passed or how distant she became, her heart would forever pick up speed in his presence.

"I am surprised you can hear anything over the fevered pounding in your chest," he smiled.

"A reaction I have no control over, I assure you."

"I would not change it."

The '_I would_' remained unsaid, but both of them heard it.

"Come back with me."

She blinked back the sudden urge to cry, glancing at him quickly before directing her gaze to her lap.

"You know I cannot."

Although she was not looking at him, she could feel his frown. The measured calm of the sky showed her more than he would ever tell her.

"You cannot remain here. Gods are not to interfere with the lives of the mortals. That is the law."

"I am well aware of the law. As you are of the fact that I have not broken it."

"You will."

"You cannot know that," she replied, knowing the futility of such an argument.

"I have spoken with the fates."

Her eyelids slid shut as he caressed her cheek.

"Isabella Marie Swan will die very soon."

She sucked in a breath.

"Come back with me."

"I cannot leave Edward behind."

His hand drifted to her throat and he paused there a moment to wrap his digits lightly around her neck.

"You came very close to death tonight. Your vampire holds the blame for that."

Her eyes snapped open with a glare.

"It was an accident."

"They will not rest until they consume your essence. You _know_ the dangers. Why do you insist upon placing yourself in harm's way?"

"I was only obeying the law. I had no means to protect myself without exposure—"

"Has eternity become such a repulsive notion that you wish to end it?" he implored, interrupting her.

"It is not eternity I fear..."

She took a shuddering breath, leaving the rest of her explanation unsaid. He was already aware of the sentiments she kept silent, buried beneath centuries of grief.

"Show yourself. Your current frailty is...unnerving," he ordered suddenly, though there was a subtle note of concern underneath.

Casting a furtive glance to the forest below in case there were prying eyes—a pointless endeavor, if Edward's usual response to hardship were any indicator—she noted the general stillness that had fallen upon the foliage. A stillness she knew was borne from reverence rather than fear.

She sighed, closing her eyes in acquiesce as she felt her form shift. Before his eyes, her human imperfections faded away and her skin gained an unnatural glow that belied her divinity. Strong and radiant, she finally opened her eyes to stare back at him, having felt his appraisal throughout her quick transformation.

"Happy now?" she asked, though she flexed her hands at the surge of power that had remained dormant for so long.

He only smirked in reply, knowing how much she missed her godly form, despite her insistence of the contrary.

"Are you certain this is wise?" she asked, chewing on her lip in worry. "The Cullens are rather fast. And they have a seer..."

He reached forward to remove her lip from beneath her teeth, caressing the skin as he did so. The nervous movement had always been a peculiar facet of her personality, even in her godly form. Although it was not exactly becoming of a god to show such weakness, he found it endearing.

"Her visions—though heightened—are limited. Our decisions—as influential as they may be—are not within her realm of ability to detect," he replied in a tone that spoke more of his authority than smugness.

"Right," she sighed.

"You know this," he pointed out.

"I know..." she conceded, gazing out at the forest. "I just worry."

"You've been human too long."

"Worrying is hardly a byproduct of humanity. Besides, you're hardly one to talk," she smirked, peeking at him from the corner of her eye.

He grinned at her teasing, a welcomed moment of amusement that he seldom experienced with her anymore. Gaze now filled with regret, he tucked a wayward curl behind her ear, relishing in the ease with which her eyes slipped shut.

"I do miss you," he spoke gently, fingers ghostly along the shell of her ear.

"Not quite enough," she returned, though the words held no bite.

"Enough to be here now," he retorted anyway.

She opened her eyes as his hand slipped to her arm and his thumb rubbed her shoulder comfortingly. The thrum of power beneath his skin as it met her own elicited the same soft euphoria it always had. A feeling that only two gods could inspire in one another through mutual affection—one that had shattered her restraint many times in the past.

She removed his hand, sucking in a breath at the feel of his wrist. It was through sheer stubborn will that she released him with a smile of regret.

"You know as well as I how territorial the vampires can be," she spoke gently, cautious of his penchant toward overreaction when dealt rejection.

"As can I," he replied quietly.

Although he seemed to be accepting her decision, she would be a fool to ignore the warning in his dark eyes. Gone was the easy affection that he had showered on her, now replaced with a deep bitterness that extended to the very sky.

She dared not look up even as a boom of thunder shattered the silence, knowing that it would not do to draw attention to his temper when he seemed resolved to restrain it.

He stood effortlessly, moving passed her toward the edge of the roof. She stared at his back silently, wishing that he would keep her company, despite the dangers that desire posed to both their secrecy and the tentative world her human alias had cultivated for herself.

"Do not forget that I warned you."

His voice was almost cold and she regretted that, as he shifted back into his avian form and flew away. With a sigh, she slipped back into her human persona, unable to shake her frown at his tone of foreboding.


	2. Chapter 2

Affection & Wrath

"You knew this was going to happen!" she screamed, accusation and betrayal shining in her watery gaze.

He remained silent, feeling no need to remind her of his parting warning the last time they spoke. Instead, he merely stepped forward, arms open to embrace her in comfort.

"Don't touch me!"

She fought weakly against his hold, but quickly gave in to grasp him tightly. She sobbed into his shoulder and with each twist her clenched hands made in his toga, the sky grew more menacing. There were always consequences for angering the gods.

Zeus was certain that Edward would soon learn that lesson.

"He said..." she paused with a sob, "He said that he was _bored_ of me. That I had merely been a _distraction_."

A powerful shudder wracked her body then, and he tightened his grip, mindful of her fragile form. He wanted to ask her to turn back, but he knew her grief would be better expelled when her emotions couldn't wreak havoc on the world around them. As much as he wanted to unleash his own fury on her behalf, he did not want to punish humanity for the deeds of a pathetic half-breed.

Although, he imagined that diminishing their food supply might get his message across.

He shook those thoughts away, refocusing on her.

She stood there, clutching him as despair filled her heart. The anguish over Edward's actions was nearly choking her, making her chest feel far too tight. Her weak, human lungs seemed incapable of vocalizing her pain, merely dragging in more air in a desperate attempt to keep her functioning.

He held her until her frail form collapsed from exhaustion.

...

She sat in her room, staring out the window. She could not see the sky as well down there, but she had not had the will to climb to the roof since the night Edward left. She did not have the will to do much lately, which might explain _her_ appearance.

"How long will you continue to mope over the half-breed?" Athena asked in a way that belied her directness, rather than an intention of rudeness.

She kept her silence even as Athena surveyed her room, poking through her belongings. She listened to Athena tut at them, though she did not bother to ask why.

"Doesn't the irony just kill you?" Athena asked mildly.

...

She stood on the edge of a cliff, wondering if he was watching her now.

Is this what the Fates saw? Little Isabella Swan throwing herself off a cliff?

Her demeanor was calm, despite the emotions raging inside her as she plunged into the water.

The waves easily overpowered her, weak as she was. She thought of Poseidon and his hijinks, wondering if this was his doing. He always had a rougher sense of humor, though she imagined that he might have actually created these treacherous waters to aid her.

Human instincts made her thrash, but as her limbs grew numb, she was able to consider other things. She wondered how long it would take for her lungs to shrivel up and her godly form to emerge.

The police would be unable to find the body of Isabella Marie Swan, and she worried how that would affect Charlie. She was grateful for his hospitality, but knew it would be too dangerous to visit him after in order to help him move on.

She would not tamper with his memories—a practice that she would forever loathe. A person's conscious was their own and if they could not even trust that, then they had nothing. She would not ruin Charlie's haven, though she did wish to curb his pain over her passing.

It was for this reason that she initially abhorred the idea of playing daughter, angered by the meddling Zeus had deemed necessary when she first professed her wish to engage more closely with the humans. In truth, she had left Olympus much like an escaped convict, though Zeus had managed to tether her down.

With his ever watchful gaze, it was nearly impossible to do anything without his knowledge.

He must know what she is planning now, though he has made no move to stop her. She didn't need to wonder why—after all, he had prophesized her death months ago. Still, an irrational part of her hurt over his seeming indifference.

She closed her eyes against phantom memories of an Edward that cared, willing her death to come sooner. She could feel it—the fast approaching oblivion that would finally free her of her mortal bonds. Despite her desire to live among the humans before, she welcomed the return of her true form.

Therefore, she was very perturbed when her death was interrupted by a pair of strong—and quite honestly, far too warm—hands.

She gasped when they broke the surface, dizzy and coughing and she tried to clear her water-logged mind. Distantly, she felt herself being lifted ashore, the bleary form of Jacob Black kneeling over her.

"Bella? Are you okay?"

He sounded so worried that she couldn't bring herself to glare at him for spoiling her efforts.

...

Bella stared at the wall, trying to quell her annoyance. Since her stint off the cliff, Jacob had become ever watchful. Although he had agreed to keep it from Charlie, he seemed to think that she was liable to drop dead at any moment.

Of course, he was right about her suicidal mood—and that was what annoyed her most. Why were the people around her so concerned with her safety? She was even more frustrated now that she knew what was coming for her.

Victoria—hell bent on gaining revenge—had killed Harry Clearwater. It pained Bella to know that she had been the cause of the poor man's death and that if she had managed to kill herself sooner, he might have lived.

As it stood, Bella felt as if she were waiting for Victoria to come finish her off. Although she welcomed the death of her current form, she knew she had to prevent that. If a vampire managed to drain her, it would take her very essence as well.

The damage a vampire with that kind of power could do...

Bella shuddered. She was beginning to understand why Zeus secluded the gods on Mount Olympus. Taking a permanent human form—more or less—was very risky. Although she had no doubt that her fellow gods would prove victorious in a battle against any vampire, regardless of their boost in power, she knew that there would likely be human casualties.

Despite the often indifferent or cruel persona that the humans associated with Zeus, he did care deeply about their wellbeing. Losing even one human whose thread shouldn't have needed to be cut yet, produced an ache deep within his heart.

Bella was shaken out of her thoughts at the sound of the phone ringing downstairs.

...

Bella—had she been in her true form—might've demolished the house in her current mood.

Alice Cullen stood on her doorstep, explaining what she had foreseen. A misunderstanding, a distressed phone call, a tactless reply, and the beginning of a terrible outcome.

There was no doubt anymore—_this_ is what the Fates had foreseen. Zeus hadn't been warning her about abandonment or failed attempts at drowning. He _knew_ that this would happen and he also knew what her next step would be.

"He's going to Italy."

Bella knew what that meant before Alice had a chance to elaborate. She didn't understand why he would kill himself over her death, but that didn't matter right now.

Time was running out.


End file.
